Private and open-source alternatives to Chrome Remote Desktop
5 remote desktop rated against the same public privacy criteria as Chrome Remote Desktop, with our picks first.
Why look for an alternative?
- Open source: no. Closed source; the official apps and service are proprietary, though parts of the host code are published in the Chromium source tree.
- No trackers or telemetry: no. Google collects anonymized data on network delays and session length, with no documented way to turn it off.
- No ads or data sales: no. The app shows no ads, but it is provided free by Google, whose privacy policy uses activity across its services to fund and personalize advertising.
- Independent audit: no. No independent audit is published.
See the full Chrome Remote Desktop rating.
The alternatives
Apache Guacamole Grade B
Clientless remote desktop gateway that runs on a server and gives browser-based access to machines over VNC, RDP, SSH and Telnet using HTML5, with no plugin or client software needed.
Based in the United States (Five Eyes). Apache Guacamole scores 80 out of 100 (grade B) on the remote desktop criteria. It meets 3 of 4 criteria: open source, no trackers or telemetry and no ads or data sales.
MeshCentral Grade B
Self-hosted web server for remote device management, offering remote desktop, terminal and file access to Windows, Linux, macOS and FreeBSD machines through an installed agent.
MeshCentral scores 80 out of 100 (grade B) on the remote desktop criteria. It meets 3 of 4 criteria: open source, no trackers or telemetry and no ads or data sales.
Remmina Grade B
Remote desktop client for Linux and other Unix-like systems that supports RDP, VNC, SPICE, SSH and other protocols through plugins, with a tabbed GTK interface.
Remmina scores 80 out of 100 (grade B) on the remote desktop criteria. It meets 3 of 4 criteria: open source, no trackers or telemetry and no ads or data sales.
TigerVNC Grade B
VNC server and viewer implementation focused on performance, with TLS encryption and extensions for advanced authentication, used for remote access to graphical desktops.
TigerVNC scores 80 out of 100 (grade B) on the remote desktop criteria. It meets 3 of 4 criteria: open source, no trackers or telemetry and no ads or data sales.
RustDesk Grade D
Open-source remote desktop software that works with RustDesk's public relay servers or a self-hosted server, with a paid Pro server edition for teams.
Based in Singapore. RustDesk scores 50 out of 100 (grade D) on the remote desktop criteria. It meets 2 of 4 criteria: open source and no ads or data sales.